Work
How to Think Straight and Concentrate
We train our brain by the things we do. For example, experienced taxicab drivers have an abnormally large hippocampus, the portion of the brain responsible for navigation. Veteran violinists or keyboardists have an expanded motor cortex, the area of the brain associated with fine motor skills. Our brain is literally shaped by what we repeatedly…
Read MoreFinding the "want to"
Many years ago, I read about a survey of workers in the United States, who were asked if they could work harder on the job than they currently were. 85% of those surveyed said that they could. And more than half claimed that they could double their effectiveness “if I wanted to.” I don’t know…
Read MoreLeading difficult people: Excited Eddie
I love spending time with enthusiastic people. I’m pretty high-energy myself. An enthusiastic follower can be a joy to work with. His excitement about his work has the potential to energize the entire team. With one exception. Let’s talk about Excited Eddie. He’s got loads of enthusiasm for his work, but only to a point.…
Read MoreThe Right Thing 101
A few years ago, I published a book called Ethics 101. In it, I proposed that ethics was not a changeable thing, based on your situation or personality or industry. Instead, I explained that I believe that ALL ethics boils down to one thing: The Golden Rule. Essentially, asking the question, “How would I like…
Read MoreThe 3 R's of Decision-making
This past week on Twitter, I’ve been sharing some of my favorite quotes on priorities and time management. Important topics for every generation, priorities and time management seem to become more and more crucial every decade. Today, in the age of the smartphone and social media, even technology has joined the fight for our most…
Read MoreIf at first you do succeed, try something harder
The willingness to take greater risks is a major key to achieving success, and you may be surprised that it can solve two very different kinds of problems. The problem of hitting ALL of your goals, AND The problem of hitting NO goals… because you never make any. Let’s look at #1: You’re not afraid…
Read MoreAre you driven by Emotion? Or Character?
Earlier this week on Facebook and Twitter, I shared this statement from Dick Biggs: The greatest gap in life is the one between knowing and doing. Life would certainly be easier – and success more simple – if all it took to achieve was to KNOW the right things and DECIDE to do them, right?…
Read MoreOn priorities: Which ball do you drop?
In a university commencement address several years ago, Brian Dyson, CEO of Coca-Cola Enterprises, spoke of the relationship of work to your other commitments: Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling five balls in the air. You name them – work, family, health, friends and spirit – and you’re keeping all of…
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